Product Reviews

Puppy and Dog Shampoos and Conditioners

In the old days (way back in 2001, even) there were very few great pet grooming products on the market, and you were pretty much stuck with a few department store brands that frankly smelled terrible and were so drying that it seemed easier and safer to use baby shampoo than real pet shampoo.

Thank goodness those days are over and we can now get spa-quality products, made by companies who actually care about the products you use on your pet.

Case in point: True Blue Pets. These folks actually sent us a huge package of safe and effective grooming products for a range of pet needs; you'll be seeing our reviews for them during July, August and September. This month, we're reviewing their shampoos and conditioners.

But let's hit the Puppy Shampoo first. I loved its gentle, mild scent - a bit of floral (sunflower) mixed with Milk and Honey. The mixture is mild and formulated specially for puppies and pooches with more sensitive skin needs. Additional ingredients in the human-readable ingredients list like Milk Protein, Honey and Oat Kernel Extract reassured me that we were talking something gentle and mild for the pooch.

The SuperFresh Dog Shampoo had a more flowery and citrus scent, not as mild as the Puppy Shampoo but would hold up well against your stinky pooch. The shampoo uses Grapefruit (to clean without stripping) and Chamomile (to add sheen to the coat). Other ingredients in this human-readable ingredients list include Sunflower oil, Green Tea Leaf and Grapefruit Peel Oil.

Both shampoos lathered up well and quickly and - more importantly to me, since I'm picky about this - rinsed away cleanly without a lot of extra work. (I hate having to rinse and rinse and rinse to get soap out of the pug's coat.)

The Moisture Rich Conditioning Creme was incredibly thick and luscious. It uses Aloe and Avocado to help make the coat smoother and shinier. This conditioner also had a fairly floral scent, but mild (the ingredients list included lavender, lemongrass, myrrh and chamomile). We had a little tougher time rinsing the conditioner clean but I think that may be because we used a little too much - it's very effective and you don't need as much as you might with other coat conditioners.

I'm a big champion of natural and healthy grooming products - as my regular readers know. I was pleased to know that every True Blue shampoo and conditioner is:

detergent free

tear-free

easy-rinse

hypo-allergenic

ph Balanced for pets

contains no sulfates, parabens or artificial colors

made in the USA (not natural or healthy, but hey, support local production, right?)

Overall, I was impressed with True Blue's commitment to creating quality, natural grooming products. If I had one thing to change, it would be the over-reliance on floral fragrances but then, as my regulars know, I'm not as much into the florals as other scents. I know I'm in the minority, though. And these products are most importantly MILD - I love the Puppy shampoo just for that and may start using it regularly, even though the princess is far from a puppy any more.